Atlanta Celebrities Welcome the World to FIFA World Cup 2026™

By Daniela Cintron and Mary Welch

Last Updated December 16, 2025

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Atlanta just turned up the spotlight with a new, celebrity-packed video welcoming the world ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026™.

Created by Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau (ACVB) in partnership with the City of Atlanta and the Atlanta Sports Council, the reel brings together 18 Atlanta icons from music, sports, film, business, civil rights, and community leadership—all sharing why the city is ready to host the world.

“These Atlanta icons represent the pride, passion and personality that make Atlanta unlike anywhere else,” said William Pate, president and CEO of ACVB. “As we welcome fans from every continent for FIFA World Cup, we want them to feel exactly what these celebrities feel: the vibrancy and hospitality that make Atlanta unforgettable.”

The video captures the city’s energy, culture, accessibility, booming sports scene, and deep-rooted love for the beautiful game as we welcome the world. We can’t wait to host you!

Atlanta is gearing up for eight matches at Mercedes-Benz Stadium between June 11 and July 19.

The Celebrities:

Sports

• Bijan Robinson
• Miguel Almiron
• Renee Montgomery
• Ronald Acuña, Jr.
• Trae Young

Entertainment

• Ciara
• Jermaine Dupri
• Lil Jon
• Ludacris
• Ryan Seacrest
• Storm Reid
• Waka Flocka Flame

Business

• Arthur Blank
• Ed Bastian
• Sara Blakely

Politics

• Mayor Andre Dickens

Civic Leaders

• Andrew Young
• Bernice King

The Celebrities and Some Behind-the-Scenes Energy

Meet the Atlanta celebrities in the Welcome to Atlanta FIFA World Cup 2026™ video and learn how each reflects a different piece of Atlanta’s story.

Sports

Bijan Robinson

Bijan Robinson is a running back for the Atlanta Falcons who, in the 2024 season, had 304 carries for 1,456 rushing yards, finishing third in the NFL in rushing yards. An elite talent, Robinson supports the power of gratitude, community and playing for something bigger than yourself. In 2023, he established the Bijan Robinson Foundation to make a difference in four areas: faith, homelessness, youth and literacy. The foundation’s latest initiative, “BijanReads,” encourages reading and shines a light on areas that impact literacy by providing fun experiences, content and resources.

Miguel Almiron

Miguel Almiron is captain of Atlanta United FC and is known as the “heartbeat” of the team. A native of Paraguay, he helped lead Atlanta to the MLS Cup in 2018. Although he has played in other cities, Almiron always considered Atlanta his home and is proud of his deep connection with the fans and the city. He is active in the community and devotes his time and money to local nonprofit organizations, such as CURE Childhood Cancer and the Agape Youth and Family Center, that serve under-resourced youth and work to conquer childhood cancer.

Renee Montgomery

Renee Montgomery took her stellar pro basketball career straight to the owner’s box as vice president, part-owner and investor of the Atlanta Dream, the city’s WNBA team. In fact, she is the first former WNBA player to hold a team ownership stake and an executive role. She is also one of the three owners of FCF Beasts, a professional indoor football team that plays at Pullman Yards, which is on the edges of the Kirkwood and Edgewood neighborhoods. An adamant activist for civil and human rights, Montgomery founded the Atlanta-based Renee Montgomery Foundation to provide platforms, programs and resources necessary to encourage growth and develop lifelong skills in young people.

Ronald Acuña Jr.

Ronald Acuña Jr. is a Venezuelan-born professional outfielder for the Atlanta Braves. In 2018, he made his debut with the baseball team and won the National League Rookie of the Year Award. Since then, he has been named to five MLB All-Star teams and, in 2023, earned the National League Most Valuable Player Award. Active in the metro Atlanta community, he hosts the Ronald Acuña Jr. Baseball ProCamp, where he, along with coaches, offers tips and hands-on instruction, including fundamental baseball skills and high-energy fun to kids from grades 1-8.

Trae Young

Trae Young plays point guard for the Atlanta Hawks and is a four-time NBA All-Star. His Trae Young Family Foundation funded renovations for the Atlanta Youth Academy gym and partnered with organizations such as Undue Medical Debt to erase more than $1 million in medical debt. He also donated food and helped serve it at My Sister’s House, a local shelter for women and children. He was recognized for his civic contributions with the NBA Cares Community Assist Award and plays a significant role in the Hawks’ partnership with the nonprofit Silence the Shame Inc., which aims to eliminate mental health stigma across various communities.

Entertainment

Ciara

Ciara is a role model for young women in the fields of acting, business, music, dancing, songwriting, modeling and civic activism. Ciara Princess Wilson moved to College Park as a teen and graduated from Riverdale High School. While in her mid-teens, she formed the all-girl group Hearsay, which kicked off her career as a singer and songwriter. She was signed by LaFace Records and her debut album, Goodies, was certified platinum. Known as the Princess of Crunk, she subsequently released chart-topping albums, and as her music career exploded, so did her modeling and movie careers.

Married to NFL quarterback Russell Wilson, Ciara, along with her husband, is involved in local causes through their foundation, Why Not You, which is dedicated to advancing education, children’s health and the fight against poverty. The foundation, in partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta, opened a center in Atlanta in 2025 to support students’ access to equal educational opportunities and children’s health and food security initiatives. Ciara also works to raise awareness about the disproportionate effects of cervical cancer on Black women.

Jermaine Dupri

If there was a list of who is responsible for putting Atlanta on the map for hip-hop and R&B music, Jermaine Dupri’s name would be at the top. Raised in Atlanta, Dupri is a Grammy Award-winning producer, talent manager and founder of So So Def Records, an Atlanta-based record label that specializes in Southern hip-hop, R&B and bass music. The label has signed musical acts such as Bow Wow, Kris Kross and Jagged Edge. Dupri also has worked with Mariah Carey and Usher.

Dupri is deeply involved in the Atlanta community, especially for those interested in music and in underrepresented communities. He established an internship for Emory University students interested in working in the music industry.

Lil Jon

Lil Jon is a platinum-selling rapper, producer and pioneer of the crunk sub-genre of hip-hop. Born in Atlanta, Lil Jon (real name is Jonathan H. Smith), was educated in Atlanta’s public school system and was a member of the Frederick Douglass High School marching band.

After high school, he worked as a DJ at popular Atlanta clubs and met Jermaine Dupri, who hired him to lead the A&R (Artist and Repertoire) department at his Atlanta-based record label So So Def Recordings. Lil Jon eventually was promoted to executive vice president, where he recruited and promoted top talent and executive-produced albums. He has also appeared on Dave Chappelle’s show, as well as “Celebrity Apprentice,” “The Bachelorette” and “About a Boy.”

When he’s not in the recording studio or on stage, he can be found rooting for Atlanta’s sports team and is often seen on the Jumbotrons at the stadiums and at the airport, welcoming visitors to the city.

Ludacris

A graduate of Georgia State University, rapper and actor Ludacris is a force in the entertainment world and in the Atlanta community. Ludacris (real name Christopher Bridges) started his rap career in Atlanta and is among the first of the so-called Dirty South rappers to achieve mainstream success. He earned three Grammy Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Critics’ Choice Award. He has sold more than 24 million albums worldwide and 17 million in the U.S. alone.

He segued from a music career into acting and appeared in the “Fast & Furious” series, as well as “Crash, Gamer” and “New Year’s Eve.” His Ludacris Foundation inspires youth through education, memorable experiences and helping youth help themselves. He also owns a restaurant at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport called Chicken N Beer.

Ryan Seacrest

Dunwoody native Ryan Seacrest is the epitome of a multi-hyphen star. He is a television host (“Wheel of Fortune,” “Live with Kelly” and “American Idol”), a radio host, a television producer (“Keeping up with the Kardashians”) and (the Emmy Award-winning “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution.”) He began his career at Atlanta’s radio station WSTR and studied journalism at the University of Georgia. Seacrest often talks about his love for Atlanta and started Seacrest Studios at the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta in 2010, where patients create content for radio, television and new media. He has since opened studios in children’s hospitals across the country.

Storm Reid

Atlanta native Storm Reid is an Emmy Award-winning actress noted for her roles in “The Last of Us,” “12 Years a Slave,” “Sleight, Euphoria” and “A Wrinkle in Time.” She has been nominated for the BET YoungStars Award and has had leading roles in the mystery/thriller films “Missing” and “The Nun II.” Not only is she a sought-after actress and producer, she also serves as a role model for education.

She often returns to her hometown and has supported the Georgia Aquarium, Fox Theatre and Center for Puppetry Arts. Reid and tennis star (and Atlanta native) Coco Gauff helped fund and open a playground (with purple-painted tennis courts) in East Atlanta’s Brownwood Park.

Waka Flocka Flame

Waka Flocka Flame is a rapper who grew up in Riverdale. He is a passionate Atlanta United fan who not only attends games in Atlanta but also is seen in the stands for the team’s away games. He first became known for his single “O Let’s Do It,” which led to a recording contract with Atlanta’s Gucci Mane’s 1017 Records. He received an honorary doctorate in philanthropy and humanitarianism from the Bible Institute of America Theological Seminary, in recognition of his charitable efforts and mental health advocacy.

Business

Arthur Blank 

Arthur Blank is among Atlanta’s most notable businessmen, sports owners and civic leaders. He, along with the late Bernie Marcus, co-founded Atlanta-based The Home Depot, the world’s largest home improvement retailer. Blank retired from the company in 2001 and started his career as a sports owner. He purchased the Atlanta Falcons NFL team in 2002 and founded the MLS Atlanta United FC in 2017. He helped the United States Soccer Federation relocate its headquarters to Atlanta, and his expansion team in the National Women’s Soccer League will begin play in 2028.

Blank is chairman of The Arthur Blank Family Foundation and serves on the board of trustees of Emory University. Since 1995, the foundation has granted more than $1.5 billion to charitable organizations, mainly in Georgia and Montana. In 2020, the foundation awarded a $20 million legacy grant to establish the Arthur M. Blank Center for Stuttering Education and Research, and, following a $200 million donation, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta was named after him.

Ed Bastian

As CEO of Delta Air Lines, Ed Bastian leads a team of more than 100,000 professionals who are dedicated to maintaining and building the airline’s reputation as one of the safest and most respected in the industry. Not only is Bastian a champion of Delta Air Lines and its employees, but he also is an active member of the Atlanta community and has served as chair of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and the Atlanta Committee for Progress and has helped raise funds for the Woodruff Arts Center and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

Sara Blakely

Sara Blakely shook up the retail world when she founded Spanx, featuring body-slimming women’s undergarments, including her revolutionary pantyhose that cut the feet out to allow for open-toe shoes. Using $5,000 in savings, she started Spanx, which today is valued at more than $1.2 billion and is sold in more than 50 countries. In the process, she became one of the world’s youngest self-made female billionaires. Spanx has since expanded its product line to include inner and outerwear, activewear, denim, swimwear, hosiery and leggings. In 2024, she launched Sneex, a line of high-heeled sneakers.

Blakely is committed to Atlanta and empowering women. She was the first woman billionaire to pledge to give away at least half of her wealth and has, to date, donated more than $24 million to women’s causes. A minority owner of the Atlanta Hawks, her foundation, the Red Backpack Foundation, is dedicated to elevating women through education, invention, entrepreneurship and the arts.

Politics

Mayor Andre Dickens

Mayor Andre Dickens is Atlanta’s 61st mayor and a lifelong advocate for the city, its residents, businesses and public schools. A graduate of Georgia Tech in chemical engineering and Georgia State University in public administration, he has served on numerous boards, including chairing the Atlanta Regional Commission and Invest Atlanta, as well as serving on the boards of Goodwill of North Georgia, the National Housing Crisis Taskforce and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights.

A native and product of Atlanta’s public schools, Dickens was chief development officer for Tech Bridge, a nonprofit that offers affordable technology and business expertise to other nonprofits in underserved areas. Raised by his mother and stepfather, he now lives in the historic Collier Heights neighborhood and is a deacon at New Horizon Baptist Church.

Civic Leaders

Andrew Young

Ambassador Andrew Young boasts a long and illustrious career as a civil rights leader, pastor, politician and United States ambassador. An early leader in the Civil Rights Movement, Young served as executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and was a close adviser to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He moved to Atlanta in 1960 and has used the city and state as a base for his work. In 1972, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for the 5th District in Atlanta and was re-elected in 1974 and 1975, where he opposed the Vietnam War, was active in foreign relations, established the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area and negotiated federal funds for MARTA.

Young was elected mayor of Atlanta in 1981 and was re-elected four years later. Now 94, Young is still active in Atlanta and national politics, as well as in the education of young people, particularly those of color.

Bernice King

The youngest daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, Bernice King, followed in her illustrious father’s footsteps by becoming a minister and a civil rights leader. A former president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (just as her brother Martin III and her father were), she became CEO of the King Center and worked to ensure that the center’s message was integrated into various aspects of society. A graduate of Atlanta’s Spelman College, she was the second woman to be ordained at the iconic Ebenezer Baptist Church.

See you in Atlanta for the FIFA World Cup 2026!

Daniela Cintrón is an award-winning journalist, editor, and producer passionate about storytelling at the intersection of food, art, and culture. She is the content manager and bilingual editor for Discover Atlanta and contributes to publications like the Los Angeles Times, Atlanta Magazine and Eater.

Mary Welch is an award-winning writer who has reported on the maturity off Atlanta’s culinary and hospitality scene as well as its growth as a sophisticated international city. Her byline has been seen in local and national outlets such as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Travelgirl, Global Atlanta, and American Lawyer covering topics such as travel, business, cars, law, hospitality and education. She co-authored a book with Chuck Leavell, the keyboardist for the Rolling Stones and a Georgia tree farmer, on the future of the American forest.

Originally Published December 5, 2025